Lonzell T.

Winn

Lonzell Winn

James Johnson

ENGLISH 1201

14 Jun 2020

"Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" Essay

“Some of them want to use you, Some of them want to get used by you, Some of them want to
abuse you, Some of them want to be abused”. These are the lyrics to both versions of the song "Sweet
Dreams (Are Made of This)" sung by the Eurythmics and Marilyn Manson. They speak about how the
music industry that millions of young musicians yearn to enter is incredibly corrupt and seeks nothing
more than to gain from their dreams. It is meant as a warning to these artists of what they will have to
face if they truly wish to fulfill their dreams of fame and fortune. However, the Marilyn Manson has an
even more pessimistic view on this subject than the Eurythmics and this can be seen in differences
between the two music videos for the song.

The Eurythmics music video, released in 1983, uses a mixture of synth and pop for their version
of the song. Both members of the band, Annie Lenox and Dave Stewart, are shown sitting in the meeting
room of a record company, this is emphasized by the dozens of golden records surmounting the walls.
Both are clad in pristine black suits and Lenox has shortened her hair to the extent that she looks male
at first glance. The music video creates an eerie tone with Lenox singing smoothly about how people
across the world seek to fulfill their dreams while Stewart types on a computer. As the video continues
imagery of cows starts appearing until it ends entirely with the two departing a field of cows into the
distance.

The Marilyn Manson version, released in 1995, uses a more aggressive rock and metal style.
Instead of a nice and clean meeting room the video shows Manson and his fellow band members
dwelling in a decrepit and rundown building. Their attire, makeup, and mannerisms give them the
appearance of monsters. They behave manically and insanely throughout the video as it goes on by
crawling around in the dark, wandering the building with mindless expressions of their faces, and then
screaming and running around at random. The video is presented similarly to a found footage film as the
person recording it attempts to flee from the band multiple time when they come close and grab at the
camera. Manson ends the video riding atop a filthy pig before adopting a religious pose with doves
hanging on his arms.

Both music videos are about how the industry young musicians across the world want to enter
just wants to use them and then toss them away. This can be seen glaringly in the lyrics “Some of them
want to use you, Some of them want to get used by you, Some of them want to abuse you, Some of
them want to be abused”. Both of them seek to use an emotional appeal to persuade the viewer
however the videos use different methods of doing so. The Eurythmics version seeks to create an eerie
tone through its soft music and bizarre imagery , but the Manson version seeks to horrify the viewer
with frightening imagery of the band and harsh loud music that will burn itself in their minds.

The styles of the videos not only reflect the views of the artists they also reflect their periods of
creation. The Eurythmics version was made in the 80s, a decade of glam and bright lights, when
 Lonzell T. Winn

synth/pop was dominant and many had high hopes for the future. The Manson version was made in the
90s, a decade that rejected that previous style for a more aggressive and grim tone to reflect how the
populace felt. This can be seen in the videos as while they have the same message the tone in which it is
delivered is completely different. The Eurythmics version while talking about corruption and greed
presents itself as clean with nice editing and a smooth sound, while the Manson video is grimy and
constantly presents horrific imagery to viewer. In the Manson video none of the grandeur music fans
would associate with the industry is present, only darkness, horror, and decay are found.

Both videos use a certain animal as a symbol for young musicians but the difference in animals
used shows how more pessimistic Manson’s video is. In the Eurythmics version cows are constantly seen
in the video and it even ends with the band departing from a field of cows. The cows are used to
symbolize young artists in the eyes of the industry as cows are animals that spend all their lives being
milked for all they’re worth and then are killed when they can’t provide anymore. However, Manson
instead uses a pig for this symbolism. Pigs are only bred for slaughter so this gives the Manson video an
even darker edge to its message about how record companies use upcoming artists. And the fact that
musicians are represented by a pig ties into the biggest difference between the Eurythmics version and
Manson’s version.

The biggest example of how Manson’s view is more pessimistic than Eurythmics is the addition
of a few lyrics to his version “I wanna use you and abuse you, I wanna know what’s inside you” and “I’m
gonna use you and abuse you, I gotta know what’s inside you”. This expands the message 1995 version
is telling from the 1983 version as Manson is no longer only saying the higher ups running the music
companies want to gain from young musicians, he’s saying that their fellow musicians in the industry will
want the same thing. The depiction of Manson and his crew in the video now carries more weight as
they are now presenting themselves as the entire industry, the musicians providing content to it
included. And they present themselves as something horrific, something monstrous, something that
wants to take the viewers dreams and just use them to gain for itself. The Eurythmics version merely
talked about how the people running the industry mistreat and use musicians, but the Manson version
presents an even darker view by showing that those musicians are just as corrupt and greedy as the
industry they dwell in, making his use of the pig, an animal associated with greed and filth, as the symbol
for musicians more appropriate.

“Some of them want to use you, Some of them want to get used by you, Some of them want to
abuse you, Some of them want to be abused”. These are the lyrics that truly show the heart of what the
videos are trying to warn their audience of young musicians about. The industry that promises to help
them fulfill their dreams seeks nothing more than to use and gain profit from them as much as it can.
However, the Manson version shows an even darker view of this than the Eurythmics version as it tries
to also warn them that their fellow musicians are just as bad. He is trying to warn them that in the music
industry everyone is an enemy.
 Lonzell T. Winn

Works Cited

“Eurythmics, Annie Lennox, Dave Stewart - Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) (Official Video)” YouTube,
uploaded by Eurythmics, 25 Oct 2009,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeMFqkcPYcg

“Marilyn Manson - Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) (Alt. Version)” YouTube, uploaded by Marilyn
Manson, 9 Oct 2009,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUvVdTlA23w